Remembering George HW Bush: a millennial’s perspective

I’m a Bush baby: born in 1991, I have no living memory of him as president.  However, much of my early conception of what a president represents undoubtedly comes from his legacy.  Around the age of 5, I was extremely interested in presidents, lapping up information from picture books, placemats, and other media designed for kids.  His portrayal drew on many similarities to his predecessors: he was a WWII Navy vet,  a diplomat who played a role in ending the Cold War, and an experienced politician who spent 8 years as vice president.  Professional, patriotic.  No frills, no glaring flaws.  Fittingly located between Reagan and Clinton on my placemat, he was a moderate for his time, and his willingness to compromise likely contributed to his failed re-election bid.  While a vocal few have used this past week to air final grievances against the man’s policies, the vast majority of Americans are mourning a former leader who set aside personal agendas in the interest of uniting and leading the country.

In hindsight, the elder Bush’s presidency had a sense of legitimacy that hasn’t existed since.  Sure he had plenty of critics on both sides of the aisle, but people were not questioning whether he actually belonged in the office.  Bill Clinton’s presidency was tarnished by scandal and impeachment proceedings, the Florida recounts/losing the popular vote stymied George W.’s respectability from the start, Obama faced a birther movement and Tea Party obstructionism, and Trump has a “not my president” movement that has been clamoring for his impeachment since his inauguration.  Military service was once an unspoken prerequisite for the presidency, but Bush Sr. was the last of 50 years of WWII veterans to command that level of respect as Commander in Chief.  Over the 20 years that I have been aware of presidential politics, the presidential aura of respectability has gradually disintegrated with our country’s increasing polarization.

My other lasting impression of President Bush the father is that of an interesting man.  He went skydiving for his 80th and 90th birthdays, which I thought was amazing.  He was widely respected as a family man: his relationship with Barbara Bush was special, and he raised sons who would have noteworthy public service records of their own.  He led the country during an interesting and pivotal era for foreign relations, serving as an ambassador to China as it opened to the West and presiding through the end of the Cold War.  He was at the center of the world conversations at that time that ushered in at least a decade of comparative peace, which is fascinating to me since that’s the last time the world had major changes in its borders.  I think George W.’s moving speech at his dad’s memorial summed it up well: America lost an exemplary statesman, father, and person last week.

Why I’m a feminist: Part 2

This: Horrifying news from Springfield this week

While the linked article focuses on the disposal of rape kits in my adopted city of Springfield, this was just part of a wider investigative report that uncovered mishandling or destruction of evidence in 25 police departments across 14 states.  It’s a widespread problem that tends to occur within jurisdictions that lack a routine audit into sex crime investigations.  To rephrase, many sex crime investigators deliberately do not follow through on testing rape kits.  In many cases, the DNA samples collected in a rape kit are the only hard evidence of a sex crime, so neglecting the kits altogether is…difficult to describe.  Despicable.  Denialist.  An inexcusable betrayal of many, many women.  An outrage that should not be tolerated anywhere, ever.

Reporting from ground zero for this injustice, I can see how the system here let all these women down.  The police department is stretched pretty thin with high rates of armed assault and burglary cases, which are easier to prosecute than domestic violence cases that often devolve into a “he said, she said” battle between lawyers.  A particularly disturbing finding was the process by which rape kits have been evaluated for testing urgency: with the goal of quickly determining whether a case was strong enough to proceed, a letter would be mailed to the victim’s on-file address requesting legal action within 10 days.  This is extremely problematic in domestic violence situations where the victim lives with the attacker, and there was often no recourse if the man confiscates the letter or the woman seeks temporary refuge elsewhere.  Miss the letter and poof, the rape kit never gets tested and the evidence disappears (with no regard for the statute of limitations, in the vast majority of cases).  If your case does make it to court, the Springfield-Greene County jurisdiction has a few notorious judges that are known for lenient decisions toward defendants, especially when faced with certain notorious defense attorneys.  It can be such an uphill battle that many women simply give up or don’t report a domestic assault at all, which is heartbreaking when you realize that there are so many women trapped in traumatic if not imminently dangerous situations.

Why is this happening?  I can’t tell you, I’m confounded myself.  Perhaps it’s a lack of resources or personnel.  Though I tend to think that there’s a more sinister undercurrent at play: apathy.  Apathy within law enforcement, who can get away with dropping the ball on a rape case due to the subjective nature of the other evidence.  Besides, thwarting violent crime makes for better headlines and pursuing traffic violations or asset forfeitures can earn money for the department.  Apathy within the justice department, who might prefer that these cases never make it to a courtroom in the first place.  And apathy within society, particularly men, who are probably for the most part unaware of this problem.  Before yesterday, I would have considered the destruction of an untested rape kit unfathomable, assuming that DNA analysis was an automatic procedure for rape kits.  Boy, was I wrong, and I hope a widespread awareness of this issue can bring the quick and effective reform it deserves.  The good news is that Philadelphia has had success with routine auditing of sex crime investigations.  And activist groups like Joyful Heart and End the Backlog are working to introduce legislation in many states to address this issue.  The bad news is that the rest of us have a long way to go, while the safety of thousands of women hangs in the balance.

Source: CNN Investigates

Edit – January 30, 2019: Springfield city council has appointed a task force to address issues of domestic violence, though the city’s stance remains firm that rape kits have been handled adequately since a policy change in 2014.